12.03.2003
Janklow Case Continues
"I wasn't going fast," -- William Janklow to the State Trooper
Emergency Medical Technician Mark Bonrud stated on the stand that William Janklow did not appear to be suffering the effects of low blood sugar at the scene of the accident that killed rancher and Volunteer Firefighter Randy Scott. Janklow told Bonrud that he had eaten earlier, but did accept a Coke at the scene.
On the day of the accident a woman said that a White Cadillac, allegedly Janklow's flew past her on the same road "as if she were standing still". The article linked, written by reporter Joe Soucheray also mentions the fact that Janklow nearly killed a family at the same intersection a year ago, as I mentioned yesterday. But he has a telling detail that I didn't come across:
Jennifer Walters reported that she called 911 to report the car that didn't stop for the sign. It developed that a deputy clocked Janklow at 86 mph in a 55-mph zone and gave him a warning.
She called 911, but decided not to file a complaint after learning the driver was Mr. Janklow. "I ... believed that it would be a waste of my time to press the issue any further as he was Bill Janklow, and I felt nothing would ever be done," her statement says.
The officers radar gun was set at 86 miles per hour. Janklow was traveling at 92 mph.
He was given a warning and sent on his way.
It's good to a Congressman.
Why would he stop speeding, he seems, as his shameful past experience shows, above the law.
In his 1999 State of the State address, Mr. Janklow joked about his driving habits while explaining the importance of instituting month-long jail terms for drug possession.
"Bill Janklow speeds when he drives -- shouldn't but he does," said Mr. Janklow, who was then governor. "When he gets the ticket he pays it, but if someone told me I was going to jail for two days for speeding, my driving habits would change. I can pay the ticket, but I don't want to go to jail. It's that simple..."
Janklow's irresponsibility behind the wheel is common knowledge:
"Anyone who knew Janklow knew Janklow drove like a maniac," said Mr. Napoli, who has worked closely with Mr. Janklow in Pierre, the state's capital, and has known him for more than 30 years.
"We were all hoping he would get out of office before something like this happened, and he didn't make it. He'd had so many close calls and had done so many crazy things that we were all on our seats' edges waiting for something to happen."
For a diabetic individual to drive with low blood sugar immanent is irresponsible, especially at an already irresponsible rate of speed. The passenger with Janklow should have driven. But that is not "Wild Bill" Janklow's style.
Janklow has touched many lives in an awful way. And has not had to face justice. Randy Scott is the most recent, the most visible case.
May he finally be held responsible for something he has done.
12/03/2003
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Do You Feel Secure?
Did you know New York City is seriously underfunded concerning Homeland Security monies?
The allocation for the five boroughs is $5.87 per person. Compare that to $15.21 per person for Philadelphia and a whopping $35.80 for Pittsburgh. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge doles out the money, the same Tom Ridge who used to be governor of Pennsylvania.
Florida, where the President's brother Jeb Bush is governor, is another big winner: Miami rakes in $52.82 per person; Orlando, $47.14, and Tampa, a not-too-shabby $30.57.
And what's the No.1 city on the list? New Haven, at $77.92 per. The Bush family alma mater, Yale, must be considered very vulnerable.
Dick Cheney's home state, Wyoming, recieves around 10 dollars per capita (article cited from September 2003).
Read this Eric Alterman piece from May 2003 ( the figures given for NYC are innacurate, reference the Daily News link above) which discusses the "other priorities" Mr Bush and Cheney have concerning Homeland Security- imagine if they asked big campaign spenders like the Energy and Chemical industries to say, take steps to heighten security around nuclear or toxic chemical plants for the good and security of the populace living around them. Cries of "Foul!", gnashing of teeth and wringing of hands has ensued, with the possibility that campaign coffers might not get much wanted "War Chest" checks if these industries are pushed to do what is right and logical, but cuts into the "bottom line"...
A .pdf article ‘Democracy Dies Behind Closed Doors’ The Homeland Security Act and Corporate Accountability By Reina Steinzor for Center for Progressive Regulation contains some eye opening facts. Did you know that the small truck manufacturer that supplies the US military found its product had a brake defect
...contemplates a recall, but voluntarily consults with the Department of Homeland Security, which advises against such a step because the trucks are being deployed to the Persian Gulf and a recall would wreak havoc with force readiness and morale. Two dozen service personnel and first responders are killed in accidents caused by the flaw,
but their families never discover the cause of their injuries because the information remains buried in the bowels of the bureaucracy.
Here is an interesting history of the Department of Homeland Securities origins by Margie Burns. Did you know that religous cult leader Reverend Moon; you remember him, Jesus Christ reincarnated (he says) and major right wing funder, owner of the Washington Times along with Billionaire right-wing funder Richard Mellon Scaife were behind The Homeland Security idea well before 9/11?
I wrote about the creepy George H.W Bush/Reverend Moon connection a while back. If you are not familiar with the material I offered there you should explore it. The quotations offered are from Moon's own websites. When looking at the Moon North Korea, South Korea and China financial connections remember how the Bush family figures in.
Richard Mellon Scaife was the motive force behind a string of purported Clinton "scandals". Let this long list of sources from Salon.com enlighten you about the power of mega-money and its ability to paralyze a nation in its anti-Democratic attempt at domestic "regime change".
12/03/2003
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